The Last Of Us: Sins of the Father
by RoninScribe79
Summary: What if Sarah Miller had not died that fateful night of the outbreak in Austin in 2013? What if she not only survivied, but in the intervening years had a falling out with her father and became a Firefly? And what if years later, in her 30's, circumstances conspire to have her reunite with her father, Ellie, and her team of "deserter" Fireflies? Reviews and comments welcome. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**THE LAST OF US: Sins of the Father**

 **Based on the video game The Last Of Us, published by Naughty Dog games and Sony Computer Entertainment.**

 **All characters and situations (besides otherwise noted original characters created by myself) are the property of Sony, and Naughty Dog. I own nothing but the original characters.**

Prologue:

Tommy saw the soldier raise his weapon and gun down his brother and niece mercilessly. His heart hardened as he grit his teeth and curled his fingers around the revolver his brother gave him, stealthily sneaking up on the armed perimeter guard. Joel pleaded with the man putting his hands up, and muttered through shaky breath, "Please don't…"  
Tommy knew the soldier wouldn't hesitate.  
Neither did he.  
BLAM!  
A quick splash of blood spatter to the soldier's helmet due to the Joels' trusty revolver rectified the soldier of any actions, military-related or otherwise, ever again as his lifeless body slumped to the ground beside Joel, relief showing on his face.  
Then Tommy looked up. And he knew his worst fears could be realized tonight. "Oh, no…."

Joel looked up from where he was and scrambled to Sarah's side. She had been wounded in the abdomen and was bleeding profusely, tears streaking her cheeks with an anguished expression on her 11 year old face. "Sarah! Move your hands, baby," her father said urgently, his voice breaking. He could make out Tommy in the corner of his vision dropping to his knees. Sarah's pleading cries cut Joel to the core as he applied pressure to the wound in order to stop the bleeding. "I know baby, I know…Listen to me I know this hurts. You're gonna be okay, baby. Stay with me."  
Tommy stood up and looked around. "Wait…soldiers….Humvees….Joel!"  
He looked up at Tommy."Go! First aid kit! Now!"  
Tommy ran as fast as his legs could carry him and back.  
He knelt down and opened the kit.  
"Hand me the gauze," Joel said urgently. He applied it to her abdomen, despite her protests. The blood was already seeping through. "Alright, baby, I'm gonna pick you up."  
He hefted her in his arms and the went to the Humveee parked up the top of the hill which belonged to the dead soldier, with Tommy driving in the front. Joel stayed with his daughter in the backseat, tears stinging his eyes. She was losing consciousness. "Sarah… please stay awake….please stay with me…don't do this to me. Don't do this to me, baby girl, come on….Sarah…..baby?  
Her eyelids fluttered, and she muttered quietly in his ear, "Daddy…?

"Oh, thank god….thank you, God….Sarah, we're getting you to safety, okay? Okay, but you gotta stay awake, alright? Can you do that, huh? Can you do it for me?" Joel's heart was aching for her, and he knew Tommy's was too. He put the thought out of his mind, using what was left of his waning energy to hold her body in his arms.  
Sarah whispered tiredly into her father's neck as he held her as gently as he could to not upset her wounds any further. "Daddy….why's everything getting colder?"

"Oh my god…" Joel muttered. That was not good. "Tommy, floor it!"  
Tommy grunted through grit teeth. "I HAVE been!"

"She's going into shock back here! Aw, god, c'mon….come on, baby! Keep talking, okay? Tell me….tell me about that concert we went to, huh? That band you liked, uh…..the Pelican Dreams?"  
Sarah was barely there, but still conscious through the pain, fighting through it. "Huh…..Hal….Halican … Drops…"  
Joel smiled thru the tears streaking down his face. At least she was responsive. "Heh….yeah, Halican Drops, that's them, yeah….yeah…I remember….I remember you telling me about how you thought the lead singer was cute, and I joked that he looked like a peacock. You remember that, huh?"  
Sarah chuckled and smiled weakly. "Yeah…..yeah…..remember….daddy?"  
"Yeah, baby girl, I know, I know it hurts and I know you're scared, but Uncle Tommy's getting us to somewhere safe, okay? "  
Her eyes closed, and she went limp in his arms. "Sarah, honey? Oh my god, please…Tommy?  
"Look," Tommy said, pulling into a fenced area.  
"Triage unit," Joel looked up briefly and the tented areas with incoming wounded from the epidemic end of the world situation going on around them. He didn't know how far it had spread, and didn't care at this moment.  
"Stay with me, Sarah…stay with us, c'mon baby girl! You can fight this!" Joel pleaded with tears in his eyes that wouldn't stop.  
It was all Joel could do to let the doctors take her and put her on a bed beside a crash cart in one of the many hospital tents and triage units the military had set up. He didn't know why the armed forces had let them pass, as they had orders to shoot on sight anyone trying to get clear of the area. But he didn't care.  
Tommy sat down in a heap on one of the empty beds. "Good Christ…"

Joel took a few deep breaths to steady himself, but it didn't work.  
"You did everything you could, man-," Tommy started to say.  
"Don't," Joel growled.

Tommy stood slowly, and put a hand on his brother's shoulder.

Joel jumped at his touch. "I said don't! Alright, just…" He stopped himself, realizing his brother was just trying to comfort him.

"Damn it, Joel, you're not the only one who cares about her," Tommy yelled. "Do you fucking get that?"

Joel couldn't take it any more…he turned to Tommy, seeing the anguished look in his eye, the concern not only for the only neice he had, but also the pain in the eyes of his brother, then anger, the helplessness…and everything just caved.  
Tommy caught his brother just before he hit the ground, Joel's knees giving out from pure grief. He let him cry into the shoulder of his red shirt. "I can't lose her, Tommy….I-I can't…"

Tommy had a lump in his throat he swallowed as well. "I know….I know."

A nurse came by an hour later, and gave them good news and bad news. Both Joel and Tommy were relieved that Sarah had survived her wounds and was stabilizing well.  
But it broke both of their hearts to know that her internal organs suffered damage so extensively that they would take a bit more time to heal. It was also a possibility that Joel could never be a grandfather.  
and any chance Sarah had had for children was lost to her the second that soldier pulled that trigger.  
They sat up with her day and night in the makeshift hospital bed as the doctors tended to Joel's wounds as well. Tommy made it through with a few scratches, none from the infected. They were put through toxicology scans and everything came up negative, much to everyone's relief.  
But both Joel and Tommy wondered what kind of world they were going to step into tomorrow.  
Joel wondered fleetingly what kinds of things they would have to do to survive now that the entire world had taken only weeks to go to hell from the infection and its spread.  
And he made a solemn vow.

 _Whatever it takes. Whatever the fuck it takes, that's what I'll do._

Hours later he fell asleep on the edge of Sarah's bedside. She put a hand to his hair to wake him up.

"Dad?" she said.  
Joel picked his head up and looked in her eyes. She was a little pale from the blood loss, but the healthy flush was coming back into her cheeks. She smiled at him.  
Joel couldn't help smiling back, grateful to whatever God or deity existed that he could look on her face another day. "Hey, baby girl." He kissed her on her forehead, a tear streaming down his cheek.

"What happened?" her tired eyes pleaded as she looked into his eyes.  
Joel wasn't sure how to broach the subject, so he opted out. "You're here, baby. That's all I care about for now."

Sarah's eyes trailed down to her abdomen. "Are we at a hospital? Where's Uncle Tommy? Is he okay?"

"Uncle Tommy's fine, he's just fine, honey. He's getting us some water and food. He'll be back in a little bit."  
Sarah looked up, her eyes betraying her fear. "You got shot too, are you—?"

"I'll live, honey, I'll live. A couple of minor wounds on my back and my legs, that's all. The doc's say that…that you'll be able to be up and around in a few weeks. But if you move around too much it'll loosen your stitches. So just….don't get too excited, okay?"  
Sarah nodded, relieved. "Okay."

It was then that Tommy came back to the tent. He set down a few supplies including food and water in a corner of the tent. "Dinner is served! How we doing in here? Hey, Sarah, how you holding up, honey?"

Sarah smiled at him. "I'm okay I guess. What's that?"  
Tommy handed Joel and Sarah two cans, clam chowder for him and canned peaches for her, as her stomach couldn't quite handle anything more solid at the moment.  
Joel put his can down and looked at Sarah. "Listen, me and uncle Tommy gotta go outside and talk, okay?"  
The expression he hated showed up again on her face. Fear. "Daddy, please don't go-?

"We'll be just outside the tent, baby, I promise, okay? We're not going far. Just eat and sit tight okay?" he cut her off gently and kissed the top of her forehead. "I'm not going anywhere without you."  
"Deal," she said, relieved for the moment.

They left the tent, and she ate her peaches. After she was done, she looked around the tent, she barely realized she was in a hospital gown, then she looked at something in a corner. Her clothes. Her Halican drops tee and her pink plaid pajama pants lay in a corner, stained with blood.  
She closed her eyes and forced herself to eat. She lay on the side of her body that didn't hurt, and fell to sleep. She hoped she wouldn't have any more nightmares.

"What is it?" Joel said, a few yards away from the tent and out of earshot of Sarah.  
Tommy weighed his words carefully. "This triage unit is taking people up north. They say there's less infected there, and people are setting up these, uh…..quarantine zones. They're a little….well…president declared martial law pretty much last night if you believe the rumors."

"You want to go there, don't you?" Joel crossed his arms.  
"I know you've got Sarah to worry about, but…seems pretty legit to me. They've got QZs set up already in Mass," Tommy said.  
Despite his hesitation, Joel mulled it over. "Whereabouts?"

"Boston."

Joel sighed. "Long way from here. Damn…I feel bad uprootin' Sarah from all that she knows here in Austin, but…"

He turned away from Tommy as his brother just stood there dutifully waiting on his decision. Joel took a deep breath and peeked inside the tent. Sarah was fast asleep.

Tommy took a step closer, whispering as not to wake his neice. "Look, seeing as how you got a daughter to think of…maybe I could go on ahead and then find a way back, get some kind of message to you guys while I'm there—"

"Whole worlds gone to hell, Tommy. Come on, man, think about it, no mail system, no internet, no radio. How the fuck are we gonna know you're even alive? Morse code?"  
Tommy shrugged, but knew his brother had a point. "Either way, our window's closing. This unit's spreading out in all directions to avoid the infected, people are looting all over the country…military's splintered up, President's either dead or not doing a damn thing to help. And there's nothing coming from the White House or the joint chiefs. Everybody, it seems is on their own, Joel. That includes the three of us."

"Ahh, God," Joel sighed rubbing his eyes.  
Both of them were silent for a minute.

"Gimme a minute with Sarah, will ya?" Joel asked. Tommy nodded and went off to talk to one of the soldiers at the maing guard fence post.

Within a few minutes he was walking back to Sarah's recovery tent.

Joel was holding Sarah's hand and she looked up at her uncle with a sad but accepted look on her face.  
"We're in," he said to Tommy.

"Boston," Tommy said.  
Joel nodded. "Boston."

Days later, all that was left of the triage unit were a few stashes of empty crates, the tents, and the air wafting thru the trees as the military convoy with all of its patients including Joel Miller, his daughter Sarah Miller, and his baby brother Tommy Miler, were headed to Boston and other safe zones already set up around the country.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello friends and fans! Sorry for the extra long delay between chapters, but got caught up in a bit of stuff like life and other distractions. Anyway, her is Chapter 2 of "Sins of the Father." The family unit of Joel, Sarah (who survived being shot from the games opening moments and is now high school age), and Tommy have been scratching and surviving in the Boston QZ for a few years. But when Sarah comes home one night, the course of all three of their lives will be changed forever...**

Sins of the Father: Chapter 2

6 years later...

17-year-old Sarah Miller made her way home among the remnants of the safe zones and buildings of the Boston QZ after her last week of finals. It wasn't really a school in the traditional sense, if "traditional" had existed anymore, at least. But she was content.

Well, almost.

Over the last few years, her and her father had grown distant. Her uncle Tommy chalked it up to her becoming a young woman, hormones, maybe the onset of her "rebellious teen years," or so she'd overheard. Neither of them discussed with her exactly what they did for a living in great detail, but whatever it was, it was causing a rift between her father and uncle.

Only weeks ago, Sarah got chills when she found her father pinning her uncle against a wall and speaking to him in hushed threatening tones with grit teeth and a mad look in his eye. She remembered that look on his face, but it was gone in a split second when he looked at her walking in on them. Tommy grunted something of a "hello" to his neice, said he was just leaving, and that was pretty much that. Sarah and Joel ate dinner that night in silence, neither of them wanting to bring it up. Whenever she broached the subject, though, he just kept eating, or told her in a firm tone that they would "Talk about it later."

But they never did.

She could see the apparent strain that these hard years were taking on her father and uncle. Everyone had had it hard since the early days of the outbreak, herself included. Her hand absently went to her abdomen.

Old wounds. It was all healed of course, but the doctors told her father, who later told her when she was old enough, they she would never be able to have children of her own. The news broke her heart, as she had always wanted kids. But thinking plainly, she didn't really know anyone who would want to bring children into a world like this one.

She circled the block a few times, wondering whether she should go home right away at all.

Knowing Dad, would he even be there? His activity got more suspicious each week, coming home with bruises and deep cuts, and sometimes he was away for days at a time, with her sitting up wondering where he was, and also her uncle.

She'd had a much more optimistic relationship with Tommy than with Joel. Her uncle was fair, not nearly as pragmatic, gruff, or harsh as her father could be. But the strain between them was becoming alarming.

She looked up and noticed the sun was going down, casting the buildings nearby in a offset red-orange kind of glow. She admired the view for a minute before rounding the corner once more, then as the curfew announcement was made, she went up the steps to her building.

She was in the hallway when she heard it. Her father and brother practically screaming at eachother. The she heard crashing and struggling. Her heart racing in her chest she ran to the entrance door and bound into the small apartment.

What she saw then made shocked her. Her father was practically strangling her uncle!

"Dad!" she screamed. Sarah ran over to him and grabbed his arm. "Stop! Dad, stop it!"

Joel released his chokehold on Tommy and walked a few steps away to the window as his brother fell in a heap to the ground, coughing and choking, with Sarah kneeling next to him. "Oh my god...Uncle Tommy are you okay?"

Tommy nodded, then let Sarah help him get to his feet.

Joel turned around and crossed his arms. "All those years with us, and you're just gonna leave this behind? Huh?"

Sarah looked back at her father. "What are you talking about?"

Tommy looked at Sarah for a few seconds. "You deserve to know. What your father and I really do for a living. Sarah...there's no easy way to say this, but...we're smugglers. Sometimes when we have to, we...well,\we kill."

Sarah wasn't really surprised. But her expression shocked Tommy anyway. "So that's the big secret you've been keeping from me all these years?" She turned to her father, who had a stone cold expression on his face. She walked over to him with her arms folded in a defiant pose as she spoke through grit teeth. "Anything else you feel like sharing, Dad?"

Joel's expression softened. "We do what we do to survive. I wouldn't expect you to understand-"

"Oh, I get it," Sarah said, still defiantly. "You wanna give me any more details than that? Should I be caring that what you do involves personal risk, or am I just gonna play the 'willowy damsel' living with the 'he-man' uncle and brother. cooking your meals, washing your clothes. Is that gonna be my role in all this?

"Sarah, we're doing this for you!" Joel said.

Tommy spoke next. "At least until tonight. Brother, you know how much this is killing me to say this...but I don't even recognize you anymore. It's like there is no line with you. You've almost crossed every damn one since we've been here, and I can't...I can't go down that road, man! Not anymore. I wanted to believe that you were better than this, but I don't know anymore."

"Dont you even-" Joel started to say.

"Sarah, he killed a kid," Tommy muttered. "didn't even hesitate. Boy couln't have been any older than you, and he shot him."

Sarah's hand went to her mouth and her eyes turned toward her father. "Oh, my god..."

Joel wouldn't budge. "He was coming up behind you with a molotov and I saw an opening to save your sorry ass...maybe I shoulda let him throw it, huh?"

Tommy shouted back, "Do you even know who you are anymore, Joel? Who we're becoming? This is wrong! It's not fair to me or her, and I'm sick, Joel! I am fucking sick of lying to my own flesh and blood!"

"We're survivors, Tommy! That's what we are, that's what we're gonna be until the world ends or we do!" Joel shouted.

Tommy's gaze didn't waver. "And someday you'll pay for your mistakes. And just like everything else, that'll be on you too!"

"You fuckin' ungrateful son of a-!" Joels snapped and lunged at his brother.

Sarah did what she could to try and break them up as they struggled around the room. "Stop it! You're brothers, for Chrissakes, stop! STOP!"

During the chaotic struggle, reflexively Joel's arm lashed out and caught Sarah on the side of the head. She feel down to her knees, holding her cheek.

When Joel saw the trickle of blood leaking from her nose, he let go of Tommy.

His brother was at her side immediately, but she shrugged him off, getting to her feet. "I'm fine," she said quietly.

"Sarah, just let me see-" Tommy pleaded.

"I said I'm fine!" she screamed at him, storming off to the bathroom and slamming the door shut.

Tommy looked at Joel, still on the ground, breathing heavily, his head hanging low. He shook his head and walked past him, heading for the door.

"You go out that door little brother, your ass better not come back," Joel said bitterly.

"Fine by me," he said gently. "I don't ever want to see your goddamned face again!"

Tommy walked out slamming the door shut behind him, leaving Joel alone with his regret.

Sarah heard the last exchange between them as she was in the bathroom. she dabbed her face with a wet cloth, wincing from the sting. The side of her face hurt like crazy, but it was nothing compared to the turmoil in her heart over seeing the final nail in the coffin of her father's and uncle's relationship. She was angry and hurt. More angry at her father for his behavior though. There was a knock at the door, then.

"Sarah?" her father's muffled voice was calm. "You alright in there?"

She didnt answer.

"Sarah, come on now," he intoned. "Talk to me, huh?"

Sarah couldn't keep it in anymore, she let the tears fall. "Go away," she whispered.

"Sarah, I just wanna talk to you baby girl," Joel said. "I'm sorry, alright?

Sarah opened the door to the bathroom and walked quickly past him, crossing the living area and slamming the room to her door shut behind her.

Joel could hear her crying. He wanted badly to console her, but kept that part of his heart locked away. He raised his hand to knock at her door, but upon hearing her sobs, he cast his head down, and slowly walked away to the couch.

Both of them would remember this night as one of the worst nights of their lives, right behind the night of the outbreak in Texas with his daughter nearly losing her life.

The sun was streaming through the windows the next morning, when Joel awoke on the ratty couch. He noticed Sarah's door was ajar, so he knocked and went inside.

It was empty. He figured she'd gone to school early, but he noticed a note she left on her pillow. He looked around the room. Some of her stuff was gone...

He snatched up the note and read:

Dad,

Uncle Tommy and I had a long talk last night. He's joining up with the Fireflies, and I'm going with him. This world's changed you in ways that scare me half to death, and I just can't stand being around it any longer. You were the world to me at one point in my life, but that time has long since passed, and last night was proof that I have to find my own way in this world, fucked up and shitty as it is, without you.

I hope you regain whatever little humanity you have left in your heart.  
I love you and I always will, Daddy.

Regards,

Sarah.

Joel was stunned! His chest heaved and he was having trouble standing on his own two feet. He looked around the room helplessly, then his knees gave out from under him as he slumped down into the matress on the floor. He crumpled the letter in his fist and pressed both hands against his temple.

Oh, God, please no...please no...

He let the tears come down his cheeks. He wiped them away and jsut sat there, staring at the letter for a good long hour.

He'd lost her.

He'd lost them both.

-

 **Real heartbreaker, huh? I've got a few good directions in which to take this story, and there are also some original characters with in-game characters on the way! Stay frosty, and I hope you enjoy the next few chapters!  
Also, I saw the trailer for The Last Of Us Part II! It looks unbelievably beautiful!  
comments greatly appreciated, and thanks for checking this out! **


	3. Chapter 3

14 Years Later - 2033

Hospital in Salt Lake City – Firefly Garrison

Marlene was sitting on a cot inside a makeshift tent on the grounds of the hospital her militia had commandeered, when the tent flap opened briefly, revealing a small shaft of spring sunlight as one of her soldiers entered.  
"Orders, sir?" the soldiers voice intoned. A female voice.

Marlene looked on her. Normally she'd had a cascade of blonde hair around her shoulders, at least in the years previous when they first met, but now it was swept back with a ponytail under a knit cap with military jacket and gear. Her outfit she knew was bristling with a personalized arsenal of she didn't know how many sharp objects, including probably the pin holding her disheveled hair in place. Her features were hidden behind a black knit scarf bearing the same Firefly sigil as the one on her black armband.

"Package has been delivered. Ellie's back with us," Marlene said.

Sarah pulled down her mask to reveal a fraction of relief. "Good to know. It's been a hard year for all the men who sacrificed their time for this cause. My brigade is in the barracks, I'll set them up to receive the smuggler and Ellie can stay with—"

"They've already made contact with them. I sent your team to lookout from the roof, and Ethan is taking point on the ground. He'll receive them first," Marlene stated with finality.  
Sarah was a little taken aback. "Sir, all due respect given, was it or was it not my team that found Ellie and her friend Riley after they escaped that mall all those months back? Discovered Ellie was immune? Reported it back to you, and protected her until we brought her to you—"

"Sarah this is not open for discussion," Marlene stated again, this time with a note of finality to her voice. "Don;'t think I am not grateful for all you've done for me. Especially this year. With all the men and women we've lost along the way, we are extremely close to finding a cure for all the madness… and we can rebuild the human race."

Sarah swallowed. "Grateful, huh? You knew. You knew before I did that they were on their way here, and you promised me protection detail as soon as they reached the rendezvous, a few friendly faces for Ellie, so she wouldn't feel as if she were in foreign territory-"

"Watch your tone, soldier," Marlene growled.

Sarah wasn't having it, continuing "-If she saw my face, if she saw the faces of any of our brigade then maybe she wouldn't have felt so afraid and alone. I know what that's like, Marlene! I know what it's like to be alone, afraid and lied to. So, I want to know one thing: who'd you hire to smuggle the kid out?"

Marlene sat back on her cot. She then took a deep breath and looked at Sarah. "Dismissed."

Sarah set her jaw. "Why him? Why did you send Ethan instead of Alec or myself? You know Ethan's unstable and trigger happy. I demoted him 6 months ago for—"

"You. Are. Dismissed." Marlene said, louder. "You and your brigade members are off-duty and regular detail until further notice. That'll be all. I want a rotating crew on guard duty patrolling the rooftops tonight, and two of you patrolling the basement until the sun comes up. Is that clear?"

Sarah looked down.

Marlene got up in Sarah's face. Both women were locked in a death stare, but Sarah conceded first. Marlene was a tough bitch, but Sarah had to respect her leadership and authority.

"I said is that clear, soldier?" Marlen said through grit teeth, losing her patience a bit.

Sarah, eventually, conceded, setting her jaw again. "As crystal, sir."  
Marlene nodded and slowly sat down on her cot, taking a deep breath. "I sent Ethan because he's a loyal soldier. And he doesn't question my orders as often as you. Sarah don't get me wrong, you're one of my best and brightest. But lately….the world out there and all your mission's seemd to make you soft in the face of all this. We survive by any means necessary, that is what Fireflies do. What we do, we do for humanity."

Sarah turned to leave. Her back was turned to Marlene, after uttering one final phrase before stepping out and away into the parking lot of the hospital.

"What about your humanity….Queen Firefly?"

Marlene sighed deeply, then closed her eyes. Somehow she knew she would get little sleep tonight.

But in the morning, they would al see this as a milestone in human history.

She was sure of it.

Sarah walked across the lot, her group of men gathered around an old Humvee that had been riddled with bullet hits, holes, mud and had, frankly seen better days. There was Hiroshi, the oldest of them, at least 47 years old, whose tall frame and quiet, soothing demeanor was one of the few lights in the darkness of existence. His Firefly codename was Katana. He nodded in her direction as she passed him. Then there was Becca, her lieutenant, same age as she was, 32, with a shock of combed over reddish hair on one side of her head, as the other side was shaven clean and tattooed with an array of crosses bearing the tombs of clickers she'd killed. And she'd claimed many, as she'd proudly gone on to say before. Her codename was Deserter, as she'd been former US Army.

A third, younger than them by a few years, in his late twenties, was Deck, short for Declan. Their demolitions expert. He had a wad of gum in his mouth as he lay lackadaisically on the hood of the Humvee, chewing and popping a wad of bubble gum.  
As she passed them, she noticed she didn't see Alec, her second-in-command.  
She stopped short and asked took in her temamates and friends. "Raider?" she asked, referring to Alec's callsign.

Hiroshi, pointed with his dagger to the tent, a few yards away from the vehicle they were all gathered around. "Shaving" he said with a heavy Japanese accent and a gravelly low voice.

Sarah nodded, regarding whether or not she could face him with the news. She stared at the tent for a few moments before taking a deep breath. "Bad news, guys," she sighed.

She addressed them with the info she got from Marlene. Reactions were mixed, but she could tell they were pissed, disappointed, a little miffed, or stoic. Technically, Hiroshi was the stoic one, he just nodded his head, being accepting of the truth, as he always was, no matter how ugly.

Declan jumped off the vehicle in a huff. "Where the fuck is Ethan! I'll kick his goddamned ass—"

Becca held him back with a hand to his chest. "Take it down a notch, big guy. Marlene says he's the one, we can't argue. We're already in deep enough waters with her as it is!"

Declan glared at her. "Talking about the potshot he took at our team in the mess hall? If he hadn't have opened his fucking mouth about you guys, I wouldn't have had to shut it for him!"

"And that's why we've been demoted to guard duty, you damn hot head!" Becca stared him down.

Hiroshi and Sarah stepped between them breaking it up with Sarah glaring at Declan. Despite his anger, Declan wilted like a flower under Sarah's steel hard gaze. "Deck?" she said angrily.

"Yes, sir?" the young Firefly said with a shaky breath, looking straight ahead.

"Are you decent?"

He hesitated. "Um….yes, sir. Just angry about the situation, sir."  
Sarah wasn't letting him go that easy as she continued her death stare. "Save your anger for some other time, because I have less than no time for it right now. Are we clear, soldier?"

Declan swallowed. "Y-yes, sir. Clear as crystal, sir. Won't happen again, sir."

"Good," Sarah said. Her voice softened. "At ease, Deck."

He took a deep breath and took a few steps back to join his team.

She took them all in with her eyes. Her crew, her unit. Her friends. Ever since her uncle had left the Firefly cause, she'd thought she'd been alone. But she hadn't. They'd all been there for her.

In a way…they were her family. All looking out for each other. And their fellow soldiers. Lately morale was low with most of the militia as they'd lost most of the convoy getting from Boston to Salt Lake.

Eventually, Marlene's convoy joined up with Sarah's small command, and over the year had proven themselves a valuble, if a bit more rough and tumble than the usual Firefly ranks. The rest had obeyed Marlene like she was some kind of goddess. But Sarah, over the years had learned better. She'd seen the folly of Marlene's mistakes and even though the two women hadn't known each other well, the day her Uncle Tommy left to go towards Jackson with his brigade, was nearly the day she thought she lost everyone she'd ever be close to again.

"Yes," Sarah said. "we're on guard duty. But I need to hook up with Raider. He'll give you your posts. Don't abandon those posts no matter what happens."

Becca nodded. "Marlene's twitchy, Cap. I don't trust her lately. Thing with the kid being immune—"

"It's bullshit," Declan said. "Becca's right, much as I hate to admit it. Cap, when we saved Ellie and her friend from that mall a year ago…..well….I had a little sister who got bit and I had to be the one to…"

Sarah put a hand on the young man;s shoulder and looked up at him sympathetically. "Deck, I know. I'm, not sure what Marlene plans to do with Ellie, but I'm sure she'll be safer with us than with some rucksack smuggler from god knows where."

Hiroshi spoke up next. "A smuggler who kept her safe for almost a full year. I was checking the comms. They are on their way. Ethan was….quite violent. The smuggler is unconscious. And Ellie…nearly drowned."

Sarah sighed. "Shit…..fucking Ethan, man."

They stood for a moment. Sarah walked forward into the tent where Raider was shaving.  
Declan watcher her go. "Guys, I don't like this. Not one bit. Just got this sinking feeling, and you know I'm never wrong."

Becca smirked and hit him playfully on the shoulder. "Stop being a fucking downer, kid. Ellie's immune for sure. But you bet your ass after Ethan fucks up, we'll be back on active duty. Protection details not action packed, but…gotta admit, we've known Ellie when she rolled with Marlene for a while. Kids got balls for 14."

"Truly," Hiroshi said simply.  
"Fuck yeah," Declan smirked. "She beat me at poker three times."

"She rides a horse better than I can," Becca noted with admiration in her voice.  
"She has an aptitude for bladed weapons, certainly," Hiroshi intoned, stroking his chin.

They all stood, watching the sun set over the horizon.

Declan spoke again. "You know that bad feeling I got? Maybe it's nothing, I don't know. Tell ya one thing, though. Ethan's not good with kids. Ellie is not gonna dig him at all. Fuckin' pansy assed puppet for Marlene. Hope he gets shot and we take his place."

No one said anything after that.

Alec Trevor wiped his face with a damp cloth as he looked in the small cracked and dirtied piece fo reflective material that was a piece of a larger mirror once. He regarded his stubble, which had minutes ago been almost a full bushy beard. He caught sight of Sarah in the rearview.  
She was standing right behind him.

He scoffed. "Sneaky, Cap. You were always the only one who could get the drop on me."  
Sarah didn't smile back, so he turned around. He wasn't wearing any of his gear besides his cargo pants. He had a lean athletic body. A body that he had honed over the years from intensive workouts with the rest of his team mates. Sarah was a few years younger than he was, but he had taught her a lot, and vice versa. Over time they had become close friends.

"What is it?" he asked.

"No protection detail. Ellie's already here, they're taking her up now," Sarah relayed to him reluctantly, closing the flap to the tent.

He scoffed again. "Ethan."

Sarah nodded. "Marlene's pet enforcer. A bit of a jerk ,and then some. I nearly beamed with pride after Declan broke his nose weeks ago in the mess."

Alec smirked and stepped closer to her. "Beamed? You?"  
"Captain or not," she replied, "I have my moments."  
"Deck's right about Ethan, guys an asshole," Alec said. "How'd they take it?"

"Like the champs we know they are," Sarah sighed.  
Alec nodded, but regarded her. "And you?"

Sarah sighed and stepped past him, to sit on the cot. "Everybody in the camp's on edge. Not just our group. Marlene's keeping everyone in the dark, regarding this…..clandestine op."

"You mean Ellie," Alec said.

Sarah nodded and looked down at the ground. "Alec…I have this sinking feeling. It only gets worse the more Marlene keeps silent. Declan feels it too, and despite the number of times his gut's gotten us into some deep scrapes….well…"

Alec sighed and walked over to the cot, putting a hand on her back. "Well, when your team is running aground of a nest of clickers inside a Boston mall, and you got two kids trapped in there…extraction seemed like the best option, and since we were the only team on duty that night…we were the ones that got her abck to Marlene, and back to safety. Or whatever counts for relative safety in times like these. You can't feel bad about that, boss."

Sarah took her Firefly pendant ion her hand and played with it. "I don't, it's just….this feels…..wrong, somehow. I don't trust it. Or her."  
He nodded. "Tough situation. Follow orders, or….don't."  
"if we don't," she sighed, "it's basically desertion."

"Militarty personell do it all the time," Alec said.

Sarah gave him a quizzical look. "Desert?"

"I'm not saying that? Did I say that?"

"You implied."

"Implied is better than saying, but it's not saying."

"Okay, whoa, hold on," Sarah replied as she got up from the cot. "what if I'm wrong?"

Alec walked over to her and took her gently by the shoulders. "All the time I've known you, you've almost never been wrong."

Sarah smirked. "Almost."

"Remember? When you said some people couldn't be redeemed…"

Sarah shook her head solemnly. "That….it wasn't you I was referring to, Alec."

Alec looked down and sighed. "I'm sorry, Sarah, I shouldn't have brought up him—"

"No, it's okay….really," she said.

Both were silent in the tent. Then Alec took her hand and picked up her chin.

Sarah leaned her head forward and kissed his lips.

Alec rested his forehead on hers and she put her arms around the small of his back as he held her.  
"Teams waiting for orders outside," she whispered.  
"They can handle five more minutes," Alec intoned back.  
She was about to object, but her scout trip to the city outskirts with the rest of the team had taken her 24 hours. 24 hours away from him. The man who always had her back, her second in command. The man who over time, she had grown to love.

"I'll see if I can get Hiroshi to go stealth around where Ethan's stationed if it'll make you happy," Alec said.

"Okay, but just make sure he doesn't see you," Sarah replied.  
They kissed for another minute or two before Sarah looked up at him. "You debrief them first. Send them to their posts. Be back here in an hour."

"Why?" he asked.

"So I can debrief you," she said with a playful smirk.

"Oh, yes, ma'am," he saluted her with a mischievous look on his face.  
He left the tent then but not before putting on a shirt, greeting his comrades and getting their gear to go patrol.

Within 45 minutes, the compound was dark, security was as tight as it could be around the entire hospital. Hiroshi was walking the halls, nodding to the other men stationed at the other patrols. He overheard a conversation on the fifth floor the infirmary.  
"Welcome to the Fireflies." It was Marlene's voice. "Sorry about the-they didn't know who you were."

She was definitely referring to Ethan. So the smuggler was awake. He listened to the entire conversation…then it took a turn for the worse.  
Apparently, the smuggler had not liked what he had heard. Neither did Hiroshi. It concerned an operation that could possibly save the lives of every infected person on the planet.

He knew who they were referring to.

Marlene….Joel….and Ellie!

He remembered those names as he snuck past every guard in order to get back to Sarah's and Alec's tent.

Sarah was just leaving the cot she and Alec had just shared some "cooperative maneuvers" in, as he called it. She had gotten her breath back and was putting on her gear and shoes, as was Alex, when in almost perfect timing, Hiroshi came rushing back to their camp.  
"Cap," he said urgently. "They have Ellie. It is not good. They're going to harvest her organs for a cure!"

Alec and Sarah looked at eachother for only a split second, then her radio squawked.  
"Alpha team report! All stations on high alert! Hostile on premises! He's headed for the infirmary. All stations high alert!"

Sarah picked up. "alpha team en route. Sit tight til we get there with backup, boys. That's an order. Do not fire unless fired upon!"

The next thing she head was the soldiers….and then panicked fires and gunshots.

Sarah looked at alec, who looked at Hiroshi. All three dartred out of the tent and were jogging to the motorcade.

"Hiroshi, did you get the name of the smuggler?" Alec asked.

"His name is Miller. Joel Miller," he said.

Sarah stopped in her tracks.  
Alec and Hiroshi stopped and looked at her midstride.

"Holy shit," she said. A panicked look spread across her face, but then was replaced by another expression.

Hiroshi was a bit confused. "Do you know who he is, Captain?"

Sarah grit her teeth, set her jaw and looked in another direction. "Alert Becca and Deck. Tell them to abort their posts, and meet me as soon as they can in the basement. Parking lot. She'll be there to stop them."

Alec was skeptical. "How do you know?"

Sarah looked at them. "Hiro, get the job done! Go! Go, both of you, right now! GO! If you have to fire on our own, do it!"

Hiro was stunned by the order, but he trusted his Captain, and ran off to complete his mission.

Alec raced with Sarah to the car park complex. "You know this smuggler, don't you?"

Sarah ducked behind a hummer with Alec behind as a spotlight swept overhead.  
"Alec….his name is Joel Miller. He's my father. And he's the only one standing between Ellie and Marlene."

Now it was Alec's turn to be stunned. "Your father?!"

Sarah was already checking the rooftops for Becca and Declan, then she spotted Declan flashing his light down, signaling he got the message. She and Alec looked up at the soldiers manning the spotlights. Suddenly, they weren't sweeping acros the lot anymore and Alec surmised with a rueful grin that Becca and Deck had already put them into a permanent state of sleep.

"I thought you hated him."

Sarah brought out her pistol, cocking the hammer back.

"I thought I did, too," she said solemnly.

Alec put his hand on her cheek.

Sarah clutched his fingers in hers. "You ready for this?"

"Not in the least, baby," he smirked.

She chuckled and kissed him, pulling him close.

"I'll buy you some time. Keep away who I can," he said quickly. "Come back alive."

She nodded and he watched her sneak away.

He positioned his rifle and scope to sight out any hostile Fireflies.  
It wasn't the kind of night he was expecting. But then again, he wasn't too up for a lot of quiet nightsin life to begin with.  
 _We live through this, I pop the question. Hope she says yes._

He made his vow, and then put a bullet in one of the guardsmen making his way inside. The guardsmen never reached the door.


End file.
